Dave Hay

Artist Statement

My work explores color, movement, rhythm, and presence. Through abstraction, I create visual spaces that hold energy, emotion, memory, and stillness—inviting moments of reflection, connection, and deeper awareness.

My artistic language has been shaped by a lifelong relationship with both visual art and movement. Raised by an artist mother, creativity was woven into daily life from an early age. At the same time, dance became a profound creative force—through jazz, hip-hop, breakdancing, choreography, fitness, and later yoga. Movement remains central to how I experience and express the world.

That embodied relationship with rhythm and gesture informs every mark I make. I paint intuitively, allowing movement to guide the process—where brushstrokes become choreography, color becomes vibration, and the canvas becomes a space for energy to unfold.

Music is deeply woven into my practice. From the spacious improvisation of Miles Davis and the lyrical emotionality of Joni Mitchell to the soulful presence of Trevor Hall and the atmospheric intensity of Radiohead, sound continually shapes my inner landscape and creative process. The pulse of jazz, soul, beats, bass, and groove informs the rhythm, tension, and release within my work.

I am inspired by the emotional force of Abstract Expressionism, the atmospheric depth of Color Field painting, and the immediacy of Pop art. Artists including Joan Mitchell, Helen Frankenthaler, Mark Rothko, Willem de Kooning, Cy Twombly, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, and Andy Warhol continue to influence my visual vocabulary.

At the heart of my practice is a search for center. Whether through painting, movement, or yoga, I return to the same intention: creating space for presence, balance, and connection. My work is an invitation to pause, breathe, feel, and reconnect with the subtle power of being fully present.

About the Artist

Dave Hay is a contemporary American artist based in Newburyport, Massachusetts. Raised in Springfield, Massachusetts, his creativity was nurtured by his mother, Jayne Hay, an accomplished artist and teacher.

As a child, Hay was drawn equally to visual art and movement, earning recognition in painting while developing a parallel passion for dance. He immersed himself in jazz, hip-hop, breakdancing, choreography, and performance, later dancing with renowned choreographer Frank Hatchett in New York.

After earning degrees in Art and Art Education, Hay spent more than twenty-five years teaching art while also building a long career in movement and fitness. He taught dance for over twenty-five years at Carol Broadway’s School of Dance (now Shooting Star Dance Studio), later creating his own dance-based fitness program, BTZ (Better Than Zumba).

His professional visual art career gained momentum in Western Massachusetts with his exhibition Circles, inspired by Wassily Kandinsky’s concentric forms. That body of work led to a studio at Indian Orchard Mills and opened the door to exhibitions nationally and internationally.

Today, Hay’s work merges the emotional force of Abstract Expressionism, the atmospheric qualities of Color Field painting, and traces of Pop imagery. Through intuitive gesture, layered surfaces, and luminous color relationships, he creates paintings that hold movement, memory, and quiet presence in balance.